WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. — BMW Group Financial Services of North America recently announced that up2drive.com has been selected as a finance offering on Edmunds.com.

An auto financing Web site that features convenient loan services, up2drive.com is designed to empower consumers through every step of the car buying, refinancing and selling process.

Launched last September, up2drive.com marked BMW Group Financial Services' entry into the direct-to-consumer lending business and furthered its strategy to expand its core business beyond the traditional role of a captive finance company.

Qualified, potential buyers researching the purchase and financing of any vehicle make or model on Edmunds.com can access a direct link to up2drive.com, where they can apply and be approved for a loan easily.

Once approved, buyers can use up2drive.com's unique loan service, the drive check, to negotiate with private sellers or auto dealers as if they have cash on hand, with the goal of saving valuable time and money.

"Our marketing partnership with Edmunds.com marks a new level of convenience for potential buyers, allowing them to research financing options with up2drive.com from the same proven resource they turn to for unbiased information about vehicles to purchase," said Fred Isele, president of up2drive.com.

Sean Peoples, executive director at Edmunds.com, added, "We are excited to provide our readers with different options when it comes to automotive financing. With award-winning customer service, we are confident that Edmunds.com users will find up2drive.com easy to work with and very competitive."